


Animi, Animus et Anima

by iamtheoneinthehole



Series: Animi, Animus et Anima [1]
Category: Rooster Teeth/Achievement Hunter RPF
Genre: Alternate Universe - Soulmates
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-03-12
Updated: 2014-03-12
Packaged: 2018-01-15 10:53:30
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,423
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1302241
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/iamtheoneinthehole/pseuds/iamtheoneinthehole
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It’s called animi animus et anima or mind, spirit and soul, a bond that all soulmates have shared since the dawn of time. One mind, in which they share a consciousness and are able to catch glimpses of each others thoughts, one spirit, in which they share the other’s emotions, and one soul in which they share one fractured self which becomes whole only when the two halves of the whole meet and cement that bond. Gavin Free has been waiting most of his life to put a face to the five voices in his head.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Animi, Animus et Anima

**Author's Note:**

> This is my own personal take on soulmate!au since I’ve seen so many amazing ones for the roosterteeth/ahot6 fandom and wanted to contribute to that. Enjoy!

It’s called _animi animus et anima_ or _mind, spirit and soul_ and legends say its a bond that all soulmates have shared since the dawn of time. Of course no one can tell just how accurate those legends are and others have theories involving a shift in environment or an evolution in genetic coding or even some kind of radioactive exposure. The most common theory though is that it is a bond that all humans fundamentally possess, and the majority never bother to question why.

It is a bond that consists of three parts; One mind, in which bondmates share a consciousness from roughly the age of six or seven and are able to catch glimpses of each others thoughts, one spirit, in which they share the other’s emotions, and one soul in which they share one fractured self which becomes whole only when the two halves meet and cement that bond. Once the bond has been cemented, those sharing it become almost codependent upon one another, and it is this aspect of bonding that has made many shy away from ever discovering their soulmates in the desire to remain singular and dependent only upon themselves… but fate has a way of intervening and ultimately almost everyone encounters their bondmate sooner or later.

For those who wish to find their bondmates sooner, however, the shared mind and spirit were their greatest allies and the stronger the bond shared between future bondmates, the stronger the impressions of thought and feeling upon them. In rare cases it was possible to hear thoughts with such clarity that you’d even be able to hear the tone of their voice, the subtle nuances of their speech. In even rarer cases bondmates were able to talk without ever having met, having entire conversations with one another to the point that they knew each others souls, minds and spirits long before they’d ever set eyes on each others outward appearance…

Gavin Free, as it’d turned out, had been one of those rare cases, something the Brit had first discovered at the age of seven after a particularly tough day at school where some of the other kids had been bullying his about his ‘funny’ nose. He’d been sat in his garden, using a stick to draw dejected patterns through the mud when he’d first heard it.

_…just wish he could hear us you know? I mean the spirit bond can only do so much until the mind kicks in._

_We just have to be patient Ryan._

_But why? Why can’t he just stop being dumb and not listening?_

_Michael it doesn’t work like that._

_What if they just don’t like us?_

_Of course they will dumbass, why wouldn’t they?_

_Geoff are you sure its a good idea to use that language in front of Michael, he’s only eight remember._

_Hey eight and a half! Plus I bet I know more swear words than you!_

_You do huh?_

_Yeah like… um… motherfucker!_

_…Geoff I swear to god._

_Hey don’t look at me! It was probably Jack._

_…Actually it might’ve been me._

_And piece of shit._

_Okay that one wasn’t me._

_Really Geoff?_

_I’d had a long day._

_What’s a piece of shit?_ Gavin had wondered to himself, surprised to find the voices went strangely quiet for a few moments and then…

_I can’t believe we waited all this time and that’s the first thing he hears from us._

_Well at least he’s not upset anymore. Hey kid, I’m Geoff._

_Geoff? That’s a top name!_

_Top?_

_Yeah tippity toppers. He felt a strange for a moment, as if he found something funny but at the same time he didn’t._

_I’m guessing no ones explained soul bonding to him yet then? I’m Jack by the way._

_Hi Jack! Wait… Soul bonding? What’s that?_

_We’ll explain it when you’re a little older._

_I hate it when people say that._ Gavin found himself pouting, the strange feeling moving through him again for a moment before another one of the voices spoke up.

_Me too, grownups are dumb. Geoff, Jack and Ryan don’t count though._

_Well Geoff, Jack and Ryan aren’t really grown ups yet._

_But you’re all old._

_Thanks Michael. For the record we’re not that old. Geoff’s the oldest and he’s 18._

_...That does sound kind of old._

_See! How old are you?_

_Seven! And a half!_

_God now I’m actually starting to feel old._

_Shut up Geoff. What’s your name? Mine’s Ryan._

_Hi Ryan… I’m Gavin._

_Gavin? What kind of name’s Gavin?_

_It’s a cool name Michael!_

_Micoo? It’s Michael._

_That’s what I said Michael._

_You keep saying it wrong!_ More of the weird feelings coursed through him but he tried to ignore them, focusing on repeating Michael’s name to annoy him (since he was kind of funny when he got mad).

_Gavin!_

_Michael!_

_Don’t know about you gents but I can feel a headache coming on._

_Dumbass._

_Hey what happened to the ‘no bad language in front of the kids’?_

_He’s heard ‘piece of shit’, the damage has been done._

_You’re a piece of shit Ryan._

_I’m surrounded by idiots._

_By idiots I think you meant awesome people._

_Who’re the kids again Geoff?_

_Hey just because I’m old doesn’t mean I have to be mature._

_Idiot._

_Dumbass._

_Fuckers._

_What are fuckers?_

_Geoff!_

——

When Gavin’s mother had found him in the garden later it’d been with a wide grin on his face as he excitedly babbled about his new friends who talked ‘kind of funny’ but were ‘super top’ and how one of them was really, really old. She’d laughed, assuming that he was referring to some kind of imaginary friends (given the fact that he’d mentioned at least four different names while he’d been talking) and imagining that the faze would subside when he began to mentally link with his bondmate…

But as time passed, mentions of his friends with the ‘funny voices’ only got more and more frequent and when Gavin had started mentioning an extra name, ‘Ray’, she’d realized that her son was either hearing voices or hearing his bondmates… plural.

And so she’d started keeping a closer eye on her son, watching closely whenever he’d get a sharp look of concentration on his features that told her he was ‘talking’ with one of them and, as time had gone on, she’d been forced to accept the reality that her son had not one bondmate but five…

It hadn’t been an easy to understand at first, how a six-way bond could even work but she’d consulted a few specialists and they’d explained to her that having multiple bondmates was actually not as rare as she’d originally thought and that clearly these six were fated just as much as any couple brought together by animi animus et anima would be. She was promised that her son would be happy with them, happier than he ever could’ve been without them by his side and honestly, that had been enough.

And so after that she’d made sure he knew, knew that no matter what happened or how long it took there were five men out there just waiting to love him and they would love them with mind, spirit and soul because they were all one in that respect, and always would be, and anyone who tried to tell him otherwise wasn’t worth his time.

As he’d grown older and started to understand more about the bonding process he’d been glad for those early words of support, especially when he’d had to work up the nerve to explain to his dad, Dan and a few others that his bonding would be a little different from most. Thankfully, most of them hadn’t seemed to care all that much and when it came to those who did? He had his mother’s words, and those who mattered’s support, and the reassuring presences of his future bondmates in mind and spirit to combat any feelings of doubt before they’d fully had the chance to form themselves within his mind.

——

The problems only started to arise just after Gavin had turned twelve, in other words just after Ryan met Geoff in person for the first time. It’d been a completely chance meeting (it had to be since the one thing the bond wouldn’t let them reveal to each other was anything that might make them meet sooner than they were meant to. Supposedly it was the bond’s way of ensuring they were ‘ready’ when the time came, to Gavin it just seemed bloody annoying more than anything), the two of them just happening to end up walking along the same street when they’d suddenly caught each others gaze and just _known_.

And it wasn’t that Gavin wasn’t happy for Ryan and Geoff, they all were, especially when they’d felt the euphoric sense of joy echoing through the ‘spirit’ part of the bond as Ryan had pulled Geoff into a tight hug but, all the same, Gavin couldn’t help but feel jealous and he knew he wasn’t alone in his sentiments based on the conversation he’d had with Michael about it while the rest of their bondmates had been too caught up in other things to notice.

_Of course they get to meet each other first. The fucking bond probably has some stupid fucking rules about having to be of a certain age and some other fucking bullshit to be considered ‘ready’_.

_Michael… we’ll get to meet them too eventually and… at least they’re happy._

_I know it’s just… I fucking hate waiting._

_Me too… What do you think they’re doing right now?_

_What do you think idiot?_ He could feel Michael’s amusement across the bond for a moment and then, _You’re blushing aren’t you Gav?_

_What? No, of course not you pleb._

_That’d probably be more convincing if I couldn’t feel it all the way over here in…_ Gavin’s head spun for a moment in a way he was all too familiar with by this point.

_Michael!_

_Sorry Gav, it was worth a try though right?_

_Yeah… I guess it was._

——

It was another three years before it happened again and in that time, Gavin knew, Ryan and Geoff had moved in together (though they’d been pretty good about not mentioning it to the others once they realized how much it was bothering them, Gavin and Michael especially) into a bigger place. Apparently they were saving up for a bigger one for all six of them but were both lacking the financing necessary to make it work so far. It was a nice gesture though and once they all finally met up Gavin knew they’d find a way to club together the money somehow. Ryan was some kind of genius after all and the rest of them weren’t exactly dumb, not even him (despite the fact that his bondmates would often claim otherwise) so they’d find a way.

Jack had met Ryan and Geoff at the beginning of June 2002, just a couple of weeks before Geoff’s birthday, when they’d all happened to wander into the same game store. Jack had been visiting some friends in the area at the time and had decided to pick up a couple of new games on a whim while he was there so he’d taken a detour into a small (but decent) looking shop, browsing through the titles until he’d suddenly heard a couple of voices that’d been almost hauntingly familiar…

Gavin had known about it the moment that’d happened; the same euphoria, only multiplied in force, coursing through the bond as another few pieces of it had clicked into place…

Michael had handled it better this time… Ray had handled it worse.

_I don’t want to be the last one to meet everyone Vav. It’s hard enough having Ryan and Geoff be all happy with their home and their cemented bond and probably their little picket white fence._

_Can you honestly see Geoff with a picket white fence?_

_It’s hard to say when I’ve never actually seen him_

_Neither have I X-Ray… but we still know him better than almost everyone because we’ve seen a part of him that only we get to see. And we’ll get to see the other parts of him and the others soon, I’m sure of it. And when we do, no matter how long the waiting seems right now, it’ll all be worth it._

_The ‘other parts’?_ Gavin didn’t need to see Ray to know he was waggling his eyebrows suggestively at that comment.

_Hey you pleb I was trying to be all wisdom-y and stuff._

_Just a tip Vav, if you’re going for wise and profound, don’t chose the word ‘wisdom-y’ to back your case._ He could feel Ray’s amusement joined by Michael’s as the other lad began to listen in on their conversation, Gavin pouting in response.

_You guys are rubbish._

_Is that what your wisdom-y stuff is telling you?_ More amusement as Gavin began to protest, the other two jokingly ganging up on him as they managed to distract themselves, for a moment or two at least, from the fact that somewhere in the world their other three bondmates were able to hold and touch and kiss each other while they were forced to keep on waiting until the bond finally declared them ‘ready’ to meet.

——

It was just after Gavin’s 18th birthday when they’d all been thrown for a loop as Michael and Ray had met on an online gaming forum, meeting in person only days later as another part of the bond slotted into place.

Gavin’s first instinct was panic (since, until that point, they’d been more or less convinced that being ‘ready’ was linked to age and if that was the case it seemed that the bond had skipped over Gavin entirely so what if he was never actually ready?) but he forced it down, not wanting to alert any of his bondmates to the fact that he was feeling this way, especially when they all seemed so happy.

Jack, Ryan and Geoff were all living together now and while Ray was only 16, meaning that he and Michael couldn’t exactly adopt similar living arrangements, they did start to visit each other on a regular basis, their families thankfully more than supportive when it came to allowing the bondmates to spend more time together. And they were all filled with that euphoria, all the damn time to the point that it was almost isolating since the most of that Gavin ever felt was the second hand snatches he’d get from his bondmates. It was maddening, to be that close to something and yet to be completely unable to reach out and claim it for your own. And as time passed and nothing happened to lead Gavin to either set of bondmates he’d never felt so alone.

Now he understood why Ray hadn’t wanted to be the last one to bond because before he’d had Michael to feel jealous with or Ray to share concerns about being forgotten, being alone… now he was alone, even as he shared his mind and spirit with five others… and so he’d begun to shut them out.

Little bursts at first, just to take the edge off, but as time had gone on he’d gotten better at ignoring the voices in his head or the pangs of concern that weren’t his own in his chest. He’d stopped answering Ryan’s queries when he’d asked if Gavin was okay or responding to Michael’s mental nudges when he’d tried to grab his attention. He knew it was petty and selfish but… he couldn’t help it.

The worst part was when concern had shifted to misery and guilt but time had taught him how to block those out too. He’d thrown himself into whatever distractions he could find, video games, messing around with slow motion and his best friend Dan, anything really that could take his mind of the empty hole in his chest for a little while. The best distraction of all though was a web series he’d started watching called Red vs Blue by some company called Roosterteeth.

He’d discovered it when he’d been bored and scrolling through random halo forums only to find one of them strongly recommending that any fans check out this new series because it was ‘fucking hilarious’. He’d figured ‘why not’ and clicked on the link provided and before he’d known it he’d watched the few clips out so far several times and, for the first time in a long time, he was smiling.

He wasn’t sure why a random web series, of all things, would have such an effect on him but he’d long since decided not to question it and now, whenever he was having a particular bad day or could feel himself on the verge of letting his bondmates back in, he’d turn to the familiar videos that he practically knew by heart at this point and allow them to distract him for a little while. There was just something strangely… comforting about the show he guessed, familiar, especially Griff (who’d been his favorite since the show had started out, though he could never quite put his finger on why).

It was just over a year after he’d first started shutting his bondmates out that Gavin decided that the only way to make himself truly happy, with or without his bondmates, would be to somehow wind up working for Roosterteeth. And from there on out, he’d hatched a plan.

After some sleuthing of a few online forums he’d managed to gain the gamer tag of one of Roosterteeth’s newest employees, Griffon O’Connell. He’d then tried to add her on xbox, not exactly expecting to have much success, so it’d been the shock of his life when she’d not only accepted but had then challenged him to a match in Halo 2 (which he’d quickly accepted). Ultimately, she’d kicked his ass but apparently she was amused enough by his commentary and his made up words that she’d decided to keep him as a friend and somehow, as time went on, they’d ended up developing a regular gaming schedule where they’d have a game night at least once a week (provided that a pressing deadline didn’t suddenly emerge in the Roosterteeth office, as it often did Gavin found out).

And over time Gavin found himself talking to her about things, random things, like where he’d grown up, what his family had been like, what his house had been like, his best friend Dan, the slow mo stuff they’d recently gotten into and in turn she’d talked about working at Roosterteeth, some of the people she worked with (he remembered his gut twisting a little with all too familiar guilt when she’d mentioned a ‘Geoff’ who was part of the voice cast for Red vs Blue, knowing that it almost definitely wasn’t the same man but feeling no less guilty all the same), her secret passion for art and how she someday hoped to make some kind of living out of it.

After a few months she’d told him why she never mentioned her bondmate.

“He was killed in action a few months after we met. I guess I just have to be grateful we got to meet since I know a lot of people in my situation don’t get that but… sometimes its hard to remember that stuff because… he was meant to be mine and we were meant to have one of those cliched happily ever afters… Sorry I just… yesterday was the anniversary of when I got the letter and I guess I just… needed someone to talk to about it.”

“It’s fine luv, I understand. Well… I guess not understand because I can’t even imagine but… I’m here to listen I guess is what I’m trying to say.”

“Thanks Gavin… now why don’t you talk about yours?”

Gavin considered feigning ignorance for a moment but, after the confession Griffon had just made, he figured it would be all kinds of assholey not to offer up a story of his own. “It’s gonna sound pretty petty in comparison to yours.”

“I promise not to judge you… much.”

He laughed for a moment before nodding, forgetting for a moment that she couldn’t see, as he braced himself for her inevitable judgement (because really, he probably deserved it all things considered). “I have five bondmates…” He heard her sharp intake of breath through his headphones but he forced himself to ignore it as he continued, “And they were all meeting each other and I guess I just felt a little… jealous? Pushed out? Forgotten? I know that sounds dumb but… its hard to feel like the outsider in your own bond and well… I guess I couldn’t handle it because I kind of shut them out after a while. Basically I’m kind of an idiot.”

“Yeah you are… what were your bondmates names Gavin?”

“Um Geoff, Ryan, Jack, Michael and Ray.”

Another sharp intake of breath followed by a mumble of something that Gavin couldn’t quite catch and then, “Hey Gavin, have you ever thought about visiting Austin?”

“Um… I guess a few times? What does that have to do with-”

“It does just… trust me.”

“I wouldn’t have told you that story if I didn’t.”

There was a beat of silence where he could imagine Griffon would be smiling at his words (or perhaps rolling her eyes at them) before she continued, “So Austin, how about it? You know… I could probably sneak you into Roosterteeth while you were here if you wanted. You see, I have a feeling I know a few people who wouldn’t mind showing you around…”

“Really? That’d be top!”

“Yep, just let me know when you get your tickets and I’ll hook you up.”

“Griffon you’re amazing.”

“And you’re still an idiot. It’s a good job you’re a loveable one. Now enough of the bonding session, ready to have your ass handed to you?”

“You’re on.”

——

A month later had found Gavin touching down on American soil, a blonde with a wide smile and covered in tattoos that made her look way more badass in person meeting him at the gate and tugging him through the terminal towards the car where three other men were standing with varying degrees of nervousness written across their faces and _oh…_

Suddenly the walls he’d so carefully built came crumbling down, the rush of feeling and thought that he’d been holding off for so long finally catching up with him as he practically collapsed under their weight, his feet unsteady for a few moments as he adjusted.

Then Geoff, had closed the distance between them, pulling Gavin into his arms and calling him ‘a fucking dumbass’ while the Brit found himself murmuring a litany of ‘sorrys’ into the man’s shoulder. And then the euphoria had kicked in, overwhelming and perfect and Gavin knew he was crying as Geoff pulled back and allowed Jack to pull him into a tight bear hug, the man murmuring reassurances as he rocked Gavin gently in his arms, soothing him somewhat. Then he’d been handed off to Ryan who’d gently cupped his face with both hands before pulling him into a soft, sweet kiss before pulling back and telling him under no uncertain terms that he was never doing that to any of them again.

And Gavin had just nodded, voice a little too shaky for words in that moment as the boys had ushered him inside the car and had taken him home.

——

It’d taken time (and a lot of grovelling on Gavin’s part since Ray and Michael especially had still been pretty pissed about the Brit’s little ‘stunt’ given the effect it’d had on the rest of them) but eventually things had gone back to normal between them, better than normal in fact.

Because after that first visit to Austin it hadn’t taken Gavin long to move over there a little more permanently, automatically moving in with Geoff, Ryan and Jack when he did. Plus, as it turned out, the Geoff Griffon had mentioned all this time was same guy who voiced ‘Griff’ on Red Vs Blue and by the time Gavin was twenty years old he was not only living with three of his bondmates but he was working the job of his dreams as the official director of Red vs Blue’s seventh season.

In short, life had never been better for Gavin Free. He just wished now that they could meet Michael and Ray face to face (because surely they were ‘ready’ for it if they’d managed to bond with each other before). And apparently he wasn’t the only one given the way Geoff seemed to adopt finding the pair as his new ‘cause’, searching through countless forums and watching a seemingly endless stream of videos in the hopes of catching a sight or sound of the pair (since they knew they both enjoyed video games as much as the rest of them and, according to Michael, Ray actually pretty incredible at them).

They’d all been sat around the breakfast table, Gavin perched in Jack’s lap while Ryan cooked for them, when Geoff had suddenly sprinted in, his eyes wild and excited and he’d set the laptop down on the table in front of them and they’d known, even before Geoff had hit play, that he’d found them.

A few weeks later ‘Michael Jones’ and ‘Ray Navaez Jr’ had been called for interviews at Roosterteeth and, after some persuasion on Ray’s part, they’d both agreed to come and at least see what the company had to offer before they turned their offer down.

It’d taken two seconds of eye contact from the moment the pair had entered the meeting room before Gavin had been launching himself across the room, practically tackling them both into a wall as he slung an arm over both of their shoulders, grinning so widely that it hurt as Ray had laughed and Michael had offered a fond ‘idiot’ and just like that he’d felt the last parts of the bond click into place and he was home.

——

A few hours later, when they’d been curled up together on the floor, Michael’s arm lazily draped over his waist as he curled into Geoff’s side, and the sounds of his other bondmates’ breathing permeating the air in a way Gavin was pretty sure he’d never grow tired of, he couldn’t help but muse that, in the end, it’d all been more than worth the wait.


End file.
